Refrigerator.



(5.1. GRUENDLER.

REFRIGERATOR.

AI'PLIcATIoN FILED MAII.24,I9I1.

Patented Apr. 1, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l .1. GHUENDLER.

REFRIGEHATOR.

APPLICATION man MAR.24. |911.

Patented Apr.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Wis/77767770516.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT onirica.

GUSTV Jf. GRUENDLER, 0F ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

REFRIGERATOR.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, GUs'rAv J. GRUENDLER, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing in St. Louis and the State of Missouri, have invented anew and useful Improvement in Refrigerators, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact specification, reference being had to/theaccompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.-

My invention relates to refrigerators in whichthe cooling is effected bycold air which is cooled by means of-ice or, preferably, a mixture ofice and salt placed in a suitable container with which the air isbrought in contact, and then the air is made to enter suitable pipes bywhich the cold air I is led to different parts oftherefrigerator.

My invention relates more particularly to refrigerators which haveconnected to them and forming a part thereof, a display case in whichmeats and foods are placed for display as well as for keeping.

The object of my invention is to provide in connection with arefrigerator and especially a refrigerator having attached thereto adisplay case, meansl whereby currents of cold air may be made to travelfrom the refrigerator to the desired points in the display case; and afurther object of my in vention is to provide means whereby the waterresulting from the melting of the refrigerating material, ice or,preferably, a mixture of ice andy salt, may be utilized to aid ineffecting the cooling of the air circulated through the display case.

My invention is fully shown in the accompanying drawings where similarletters are used to designate similar parts. Figure 1 is a horizontalsection along the line 11 of Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional viewshowing the interior arrangement of -t-he refrigerator; Fig. 3 is ahorizontal section.,A

looking upward, along the line 3-3 of Fig.

2; Fig; 4 is a vertical section along the line 4 4 of Fig. 1; Fig. 5 isa vertical section along the line 5--5 of Fig. l; and Fig; 6 is avertical section along the line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the figures, 1 is the casing of the refrigerator, which ispreferably made of wood and which has its walls filled with insulatingmaterial to prevent heat from enter- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 1, 1919.

l `Application filed March 24, 1917. Serial No. 157,163.

windows whereby persons may see the meats and foods exposed in theinterior of that part of the refrigerator which serves as a displaycase'. 2 is the refrigerator chamber in which is placed a suitablecontainer A for receiving ice or a mixture of broken ice and salt. 3 isa suitable display case in which meat and foods may e placed, and whichis provided with suitab e windows. 4: is a fan housing. The container Ais preferably lprovided with dependent legs B having their lower endsopen, but provided with cross bars C which prevent the pieces of icefrom dropping out of the legs while allowing water or brine, resultingfrom the melting of the ice, to drain away. D is a tank adapted toreceive the brine from the container A, and which is provided with ascreen E by which will be caught any small pieces of ice that'may dropfrom the legs B. T he tank D isprovided with one or more overflow pipesF, each of which. discharges into a header G which is connected by meansof suitable tubes I to a second header H. This second header H isprovided with an overiiow pipe J by means of which water is `dischargedtherefrom into the header Kl which is connected by suitable tubes M to aheader L. In the exemplification of my invention shown in the drawingsthere are two headers G and two headers K, each provided with a suitablecompanion header, H and L, respectively. Each pair of headers G and H orK and L, with their connecting tubes, form a section. It is evident thatthere may be as 'many of these sections as are necessary or desirableand they may be arranged side by side or in tandem as shown. Inside ofeach of the tubes I and M there is provided an air tube I1 and M1,respectively. When the sections are in place the left hand end of eachvof the tubes I, register with the right hand end of a tube M1, so as tomake a joint whereby the two tubes are connected so as to allow air topass from one to the other.

Each of the tubes M1 is connected 'by suitable i vthe display case, andeach of these tubes S is provided with a suitable damper c byl means ofwhich the flow of air may be regulated. It is understood that'thetubes Sare preferably built up in the sections as shown in the drawings, sothat they may be easily taken apart and out of the refrigerator forcleaning purposes. rll`he right hand end of each of the tubes l,register with and connect by means of a slip-joint, to one of the tubesQ which pass through the lower part of the tank D and which opens intothe fan chain ber R. lin order that the different sections may be easilyconnected to one another or disconnected, the joints, by which the airtubes of one are connected to the air tubes in another, are formed asshown in section in Fig. l. That is, each joint is formed by enlargingthe end of one tube as indicated at b so that the end a of theconnecting tube may be slipped into the enlargement. A similarslip-joint is preferably provided for connecting the tubes Q, to the fanchamber R. S, indicates tubes extending through upper parts of thecontainer A. T is a fan connected to and operated by the motor U whichis adjustably supported on the stand V which is carried by the shelf X.W is an air passage through which air enters the fan housing from therefrigerator and show case. The motor U is, preferably, an electricmotor and is connected to a suitable source of supply of electricity bymeans of wires, not shown, and suitable switches are provided wherebythe operation of the motor may be controlled.

Broken ice or, preferably, a mixture of broken ice and salt is placedinthe container and the fan set in motion. Air is drawn from the showcase to the refrigerator chainber 2 where it is made to come in contactwith the exterior `walls of the container and the legs B, and also theinterior walls of the tubes S, and thereby is cooled. The air passesfrom the fan through the tubes Q, l, and M1, into the tubes S, and bythese latter are discharged at different points into the display case.The brine and cold water resulting from the vmelting of the ice in thecontainer A enters the tank D where it surrounds the pipes Q, and thenoveriiows into the header G and fills the section of which this headeris a part and surrounds the air tubes l1.l When the header H ,hasbeenfilled, the cold water overflows into the header K and fills the sectionof which K is a part and surrounds the tubes M1. When the header L isfilled, the water rove'rliows through the pipe N into the trap N, andfrom this it passes away through the drain pipe D. During lthe passageof the air through the tubes Q, l, and M, the air is cooled by theaction of the cold water which surrounds these tubes, and thus the fullrefrigerating edect of the cold water is used in cooling the air. Theamount of air made to pass through the tubes in a given time may beregulated by the dampers c or by regulating the speed of the fan. Afterthe mesme moved out of position on the shelf X so as to leavetheentrance to the chamber R open for the free admission of air, and thencirculation will continue through the pipes for several hours. In thisway the amount of electricity required to operate the fan may i be keptat a minimum.

Iprefer to provide the container A, the tank D, and the headers U and Lwith suitable drain cocks P, so that when it is desired to clean theapparatus all the water therein may be drained out. lt is especiallydesirable to drain the water from' the tank D and the sections when. itbecomes necessary to remove them, because otherwise the weight of thewater in them would make these parts difficult to handle.

I do not intend to confine myselfto the exact proportions of apparatusshown in the drawings nor to the precise arrangement of details, sinceit is evident that these may be changed within wide limits withoutdeparting from the spirit of my invention.

What l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: l. Arefrigerator comprising a casing, a container for ice and salt, aplurality of sections arranged in tandem and adapted to receive brinefrom said container, each of said sections having two headers connectedby one or more double tubes, each double tube comprising an inner and anouter tube, said outer tube connecting the adjacent walls of saidheaders and said inner tube eXtending through said headers, meanswhereby the inner tubes of one section are connected to the inner tubesof its adjacent sections so as to aord a continuous passage for airthrough said sections.

2. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for ice and salt, atank adapted to receive brine from said container, a section adapted toreceive brine from said tank, one or more air tubes extending throughsaid tank, one or more l air tubes extending through said section, andmeans whereby the said tubes through said section are connected to thesaid tubes through said tank so as to aHord a continuous passage for airthrough said tank and said section.

3. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a v

containerfor ice and salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from saidcontainer, a plural- .ity of sec-tions arranged in tandem and adapted toreceive brine from said tank, one

-for airfthrough. said tankfand said sections.

4. refrigerator comprising a casing', a

4 container for ice and, salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from saidcontainer, a section fan whereby air is made to circulate through.

said tubes. v

5. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for iceand salt, atank adapted to` receive brine from said container, a section adapted toreceive brine from said tank, one or more air tubes extending throughsaid tank, one or more air tubes extending through said section, meanswhereby the,

said tubes through said section are connectved to the said tubes throughsaid tank so as to aEord a continuous passage for air through said tankand said section, a fan whereby air is made to circulate through saidtubes,l and means whereby the flow of air through said tubes isregulated.

'6.' A refrigerator comprising a casing, a

container for ic and salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from saidcontainer, a plurality of sections arranged in tandem and adapted toreceive brine from said tank, one or more air tubes extending throughsaid tank, one or more air tubes extending' i through each section,means whereby the said tubes through said sections are connected to oneanother and to the said tubes in sald tank so as to .aord a continuouspassage for air through said tank and saidv sections,` and a fan wherebyair is made to circulate through said tubes.

7. A refrigerator comprising a casing, aA

container for ice and salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from saidcontainer, a' plurality ofl sections arranged in tandem and adapted toreceive brine from said tank, one or more airtubes extending throughsaid tank, one or more air tubes extending through each section, meanswhereby the said tubes through said sections are connected to oneanother and to the said tubes in said tank so as to aford a continuous'passage for air through said tank and said sections, a fan whereby airis made to circu-v late through said air tubes, and means whereby theflow of air through said tubes is regulated.

8. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for ice and saltadapted to allow a circulation of air through the upper part thereof ina substantially horizontal dlrection, one or more air tubes arranged ina substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casin andadapted to be cooled by contact with brine from said container, andmeans whereby the air in said casing is caused to circulate in onedirection through the upper part of said con-- tainer and in theopposite direction through said air tubes.

9. A refrigerator comprisinga casing inclosing a compartment for foodand a refrigerant chamber whose top 1s on a higher level than that ofsaid compartment, a container for ice and salt in said chamber havingtwo opposite sides spaced from the walls of said chamber` so as to formpassages for the circulation of air between the walls of said containerand said chamber, means whereby a circulation of air is allowed from oneof said passages to the other through the `lpp'er part fof saidcontainer, and one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled by brine fromsaid container and arranged in a substantially horizontal position nearthe bottom of said casing and in such relation with respect to saidcontainer 'that the circulation of air through said tubes is in adirection opposite to that through the upper part of said container. A

' 10. A refrigerator comprising a casing inclosing a compartment lforfood and a refrigerant chamber whose top is on a higher level than thatof said compartment, la container for ice and salt, means whereby acirculation of air in a substantially hori- 'zontal direction is allowedthrough said container at a level above that of the top of saidcompartment, one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled by brine fromsaid container'and arranged in a substantially horizontal position nearthe bottom of said case and in such relation with respect to saidcontainer that the circulation of air through said tubes is in adirection opposite to that through the upper4 part of said container.

11. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a

`container for, ice and salt, said container being 'so constructed andarranged as to allow a circulation of a1r 1n a substantially horizontaldirection throu h the u per part Ithereof at a level above t at of t etop of the part of said refrigerator in which food is placed, one ormore air tubes adapted to be cooled by brine from said container andarranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of saidcasing and in such relation with respect to said container that thecirculation of air through said tubes is in a direction opposite to thatthrough the upper Vpart of said container.

12. A refrigerator comprisingacasin a container for ice and salt adaptedto al ow a circulation of air through the upper part thereof inasubstantially horizontal direction, one or more air tubes arranged in asubstantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casing andadapted to. be cooled by contact with brine from said container, and afan whereby air is made to circulate in one direction through the upperpart of said container and in an opposite direction through said airtubes,

iso

13. A refrigerator comprising l a casing inclosing a compartment forfood and a refrigerant chamber whose top. is on a higher level than thatof said compartment, a container for ice and salt in said chamber havingtwo opposite sides spaced from the walls of said chamber so as to formpassages for the circulation of air between the walls of said containerand said chamber, means whereby a circulation of air Ais allowed fromone of said passages to the other through the upper part of saidcontainer, one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled 'by brine fromsaid container and arranged in a substantially horizontal position nearthe bottom of said casing, and a fan whereby air is made to circulate inone direction through the upper part of said container and in anopposite direction through said air tubes.

14. A refrigerator comprising a casing inclosing a compartment for foodand a refrigerant chamber whose top is on a higher levelthan that ofsaid compartment, a container 4for ice and salt in said chamber, meanswhereby a circulation of air in a substantially horizontal direction isallowed through said container at a level above that Legame of the topof said compartment, one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled by brinefrom said container and arranged in a substantially horizontal positionnear the bottom of said casing, and afan whereby aill is made tocirculate through the upper part of said container in one direction andthrough said air tubes in the opposite di rection.

15. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for ice and salt,said container being so constructed and arranged as 'to allow acirculation of air in a substantially horizontal direction through theupper part thereof at a level above that of the to of the part of saidrefrigerator in which food is placed, one or more air tubes adapted tobe cooled by brine from said container` and arranged in a substantiallyhorizontal position near the bottom of said casing, and -a fan wherebyair is made to circulate in one direction through the upper part of saidcontainer and in an opposite direction through said tubes.

In witness whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

eUsTAv J. GRUENDLER.

